Located at 518 N. Hobart sits The Antler Cafe, a brand new restaurant in a familiar place with a familiar atmosphere and menu.
Owned and operated by Pete Long, The Antler Cafe brings that small-town, cozy vibe and hospitality the Texas panhandle is known for, from the servers who greet you with a smile to the country-style menu that will leave you full and happy.
Born and raised in Pampa, Pete got his start in the restaurant business as a teenager working at Peggy’s Place, a well-known Pampa staple whose closure many years ago undoubtedly affected a good chunk of the town’s citizens who were years-long regulars at the hometown establishment.
The impact the restaurant had on Pete stayed with him through adulthood, from the menu to the atmosphere, and when it was time for him to finally make his dream come true, he kept Peggy’s Place in mind.
“I worked at Peggy’s Place while I was in high school as a cook,” he said. “That’s where I got some of my restaurant experience and my love for food. My aunt managed it for a long time and most of my family worked there. I actually have a few employees who worked there too, so there’s some history there. That’s why there’s a few items on the menu, like the Peggy’s Pancake Sandwich, to honor her. We’re not trying to take credit for her menu, but it is pretty similar to what she had, and in the description, it starts with ‘In Honor’ of her. I did talk to the family about it and they thought it was awesome. The biggest thing for me was I loved seeing people leave happy and full, and that to me means more than anything.”
Although this is Pete’s first time managing a restaurant, he had plenty of time to build a plan and waited for the perfect opportunity to present itself.
The location of The Antler Cafe was previously Cyd’s Cafe owned and operated by Andrew Morriss, and before Cyd’s was in that particular building, its first home was along Alcock Street. It was during that time when Cyd’s Cafe first opened up that Pete had begun building a plan for a future endeavor, keeping in touch with Andrew along the way.
“Back in 2023, I did a lot of research on the back side of the management part and the numbers and things like that, and I built a business plan. I worked with the PEDC on building that plan, but it just ended up not being the right time. It was all on the Lord’s timing, but it had been on my heart for a while.”
“When Andrew opened over there (Alcock location), I was right at the end of building my business plan. I ended up going on a different venture, but at the same time, I was still building the plan. We talked and I said, ‘I’ll hold my plan back and let you do yours because I’m doing this other thing anyway and won’t be fully focused.’ I told him if he was ever interested in going back to what his passion was and wanted to step out of this business, I would love the opportunity. He’s going to go back to being a lineman, and he set us up a really great foundation here to thrive and build on.”
With the support of his wife Heather and their two sons, as well as family and friends, Pete took that leap of faith and opened up The Antler Cafe. A few of the popular menu items from Cyd’s will be carried over into the new menu, and all of the employees who worked for Cyd’s will still be there to greet and seat you at The Antler Cafe.
“So those menu items may not be named the same, but they are going to be the same. And we did retain all the employees so no one lost their job during the transfer. That was our biggest thing when we started our discussions, to make sure that everyone he had working for him could continue working so they didn’t have to look for a job.”
The transition was relatively smooth, only shutting down for about a week to do some minor cleaning and interior decorating.
When asked what his favorite menu item is, Pete admitted that he is a breakfast guy, and so when it came to building the menu, he wanted to make sure that breakfast would be served all day, including the popular Texas Scramble.
“My mom asked me that same question,” he laughed. “I’d say my favorite breakfast item is the Texas Scramble. It is bacon, sausage, ham, hashbrowns and eggs all scrambled together with cheese on top. I wanted to make sure we have a full menu all day because I would love to have my Texas Scramble at like two or three in the afternoon, but you just don’t have something like that in town. There are night crew guys who don’t get off work until 7 o’clock in the morning who would love a dinner meal where most people are serving breakfast. On our menu, we have our steak and our chicken fries and our porkchops that also come with eggs and hashbrowns, so that you can have a premium-type meal for your breakfast. There are quite a few options, like dinner options could be a breakfast plate or something like that. We aim to please.”
Servitude is at the heart of everything Pete does, whether it be bringing people together through a good meal, or by his 18-year long dedication to keeping people safe through the Hoover Volunteer Fire Department where he currently serves as captain.
“This has always been a dream of mine ever since I started cooking. I cooked for my family at home, and it’s just that joy you see on people’s faces while they’re eating your food-that’s what it’s about. I encourage everyone to come out, give us a shot, and give us just a little bit of grace in the beginning as we learn and grow. We’re still going to push to make sure the food and service is always great.”
The Antler Cafe is currently open Tuesday from 7 AM to 2 PM, Wednesday through Saturday from 7 AM to 9 PM, and Sunday from 8 AM to 3 PM.
